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tv   News  Al Jazeera  February 28, 2014 10:00am-11:01am EST

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>> hello and welcome to the newsur. in da has, here's what's coming up. >> i was forced to leave the ukraine under the immediate threat to my life and the life of my family. >> ukraine's ousted president says he's still the country's legitimate leader. >> armed men supporting russia take over the airports in the crimean capitol as the ukraine
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asks the u.n. to intervene. >> in london, more reaction on those fast moving developments in ukraine. viktor yanukovych insists he's in charge. we'll have analysis on who is running the country and the money leaving from it. >> also ahead, the french president arrives in central african republic where his military operations are expanding. >> building a toy dynasty one little plastic brick at a time. ♪ >> hello, so the struggle for ukraine's future has taken on several twists in the last few hours. let's take you through them all.
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speaking from southern russia, viktor yanukovych said he's still the legitimate leader of ukraine and called the protestors who overthrew him fascists, meanwhile inside ukraine, armed men apparently aligned to russia have taken control of the international airport in the crimean region. crimea's parliament, a new government is being formed after armed men to over the parliament over there. in the capitol kiev, the new interim government has prepared papers for yanukovych's extradition from russia. it's also called for u.n. intervention. meanwhile, the protestors who called for yanukovych's out of g are still out on the streets. >> it's one extremely complicated story, has many different angles and locations. aljazeera is in all of the locations. let's start from the russian city where the ousted president,
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viktor yanukovych, has surfaced one week after leafing kiev. he's been speaking, saying that he had to leave ukraine because of threats. >> that's true, the press conference is over now. it went on for quite some time. the journalists who flocked here from many ways all over the world are now fading away into the dusk. viktor yanukovych was clearly a man who had a lot to say. he feels that the narrative that is being spun around what's going on in ukraine has neglect said his voice simply because he wasn't there to put it across. this was the first time he could stick his head up and make his case. he said what's been going on in ukraine was not his fault, that it was essentially a situation
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that had been brought about by duplicitous powers in the west and nationalists and fascists in ukraine. as he put it, he is still the legitimate president of ukraine. >> nobody overthrow me, nobody overthrow me. i was forced to leave the ukraine under the immediate threat to my life and the life of my family. as you know, in ukraine, the authorities was seized, power was seized by the nationalists, pro fascist people who represent the minty of the people of ukraine. >> he did take a good number of questions official the
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journalists. some are soft, some fairly harsh. there was one moment of who you milty where viktor yanukovych said he apologized for the state that ukraine was in, that he didn't have the strength or the power to maintain civility. apart from that, it was a display of defiance. he was also justifying many decisions that he made, as he said fleeing the country not because he was relinquishing power, but he and his family's lives were under threat. he said that he wasn't calling for military interception. that is something that will go down or accepted with relief i suppose in ukraine. he said that he did not order the troops and the police in ukraine to fire on protestors. he said also that he hadn't spoken to vladimir putin in person yet, but had a conversation with him on the phone.
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now, we will wait to see what is next from viktor yanukovych, the man who's still calling himself the president of ukraine. >> yeah, we sure will, rory, for the time being, thank you very much. there are also growing signs that crimea is rebelling against the new leadership in kiev. the interior minister of ukraine accused the kremlin in moscow of directing armed units to occupy a regional airport. lawrence lee is at that airport for us to tell us what the situation is. >> as night falls here, the russian or pro russian forces who have been in control of the perimeter of these buildings for more than 12 hours now are absolutely still in control. they're very relaxed. there's no sense of tension here at all. in the last few hours, some have tried to suggest it is not pro russian forces who are in fact
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in charge of security here. i have to say that is either disingenuous or at worst a complete lie. for the whole time that we've been here, there's been absolutely no attempt by anybody to budge these people from their positions and what it appears to be is yet another expression of which the expense of which kiev is losing its grip on crimea. >> on thursday, people in the pro russian block in crimea have told us they would welcome russian troops. by first light on friday, it seems they may have got their wish. at the civilian airport, they didn't remain being filmed. a man came forward to explain in a manner of speaking. >> we want to prevent the arrival of fascists and radicals from ukraine. >> inside the airport, it
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appeared business as usual. the flights all showed up as normal. a couple of policemen stood around looking lost. we asked one who looked official what was going on. >> no comment. >> within a few hours, the ukrainian security forces told us categorically that they were russian troops. russian sold injuries have surrounded the military airport to keep what they called enemy fighters out. they would no doubt see all of this as protection of the russian majority in crimea. >> there are also things you might say about this but the most striking is that there are no ukrainian security forces here. these men are armed. they're not wearing insignia. it's by no means clear who they are answerable to and they now control security at a major regional airport in ukraine. if you want some evidence, this
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is it. >> rumors came and went, so did the soldiers, was there a russian coalition here. as the hours passed, nothing happened. >> the airport security men came out and said they wouldn't let the soldiers inside, but they were already coming and going through the v.i.p. area as if they owned the place. >> the pro russian civilians here who stood proudly by the soldiers, offering them cigarettes, also took ownership of the media, trying to prevent the cameras from filming a shift change. there is no structure to them. if you can them a question, you may or may not get an answer. so this, it seems may now be the new normal in crimea, a place almost entirely under russian control and if all the loud complaints in kiev, there appears there is absolutely
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nothing they can do about it. >> you should consider the ease with which over the last 48 hours those people took over the crimean parliament and these people have taken over the airport and run prim terse around the military airport, as well. how embarrassing that is for the new government in kiev that they don't appear to have any forces who can take these people on. for all their words about armed takeovers, appeals to the united nations to intervene, and the anger with which kiev holds crimea at the moment, nothing they are doing is having any effect at all. it does seem to me as of tonight that maybe the politicians in kiev need to try a different approach to crimea rather than just antagonizing people down here. >> lawrence, thank you very much. lawrence lee reporting from outside the airport in crimea. >> the parliament and russian flag is still flying in
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simferopol. >> we understand that at the moment, the parliament is still under the hands of these men who have taken it over. it's very peaceful. we haven't seen any signs that they had any weapons with them, at least from the outside, there's no sign of that. inside the parliament, there are many things that are happening. the first one is that crimea has its own new prime minister interim. he confirmed to us that he has been going throughout the day in consultations to form a new cabinet and it's nearly done. from what we understand, he has nominated his two deputies and 18 out of the 20 ministers who
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would form that cabinet. now, the rhetoric coming out of him is he does not recognize the new authorities in kiev, nor will he take any orders from the authorities in kiev. he still rewards viktor yanukovych as the legitimate president of ukraine. he outlined that he doesn't want to break up, that crimea should remain part of this country. it has to be underlined that crimea is an autonomous region. there has been a call for a referendum to be held on the same day as the national presidential elections on may 25, even though there is talk for that to happen earlier, and that referendum would be about giving crimea more autonomy from kiev. this is the situation as we are now people here do want to go ahead with the autonomy and also want to protect what they already have. >> ok, thank you very much.
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let's take you over to the ukrainian capitol in kiev and find how this is viewed over there. that's where the anti russian government is supposed to be in control. let's go to kiev. how much are they in control, and what is the reaction to first of all what's going on in crimea? >> what they desperately want to achieve here in kiev is stability throughout the country. now, obviously, events in crimea have shaken them, because there is obviously a pro russian movement there, and they are asserting themselves. now, in kiev, they see it this way, they acknowledge that it is an out to know mouse republic, but it is also part of ukraine.
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i think they would like to see some negotiation through international bodies. they've asked the u.n. to come in and try to help, and they've also referred to a pact signed by the united states and russia and the united kingdom to respect the territorial integrity of ukraine, wherever that maybe, and that includes crimea. they are alarmed. they have been insisting that they will not tolerate what they reward as further in surgeons into ukrainian territory, but i think at the same time, they hope that moscow will keep the lid on this, that it will not exacerbate the situation. you mentioned former president yanukovych making that speech or that press conference in moscow.
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well, the reaction here frankly, they reward him as yesterday's man. they believe his days are over. many people here said they now reward him as something of a joke. here's what a young activist told me in independence square a short while ago. >> i doubt he has any kind of support now, but he's coming back. i'm communicating with families, their sons and husbands and i'm sure they would like to see him back. they would like -- this could be good news for them. we all actually want him back here at court answering all the questions. >> to put him on trial. >> to put him on trial, correct and answer all the questions we have for him. >> what riels most of them here, of course is that yanukovych is denying he's had anything to do with the killings in the square behind me, more than 100 over
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three months. he said they had nothing to do with him. they certainly don't see it that way at all. back to you. >> thank you very much. tim friends reporting from kiev. you're watching the news hour on aljazeera. still to come, refusing to budge, thigh land's prime minister saying she won't be pushed out of office. >> the lange march for justice, relatives in pakistan reach an important custom. >> drama and controversy in the europa league with the top 16, details coming up in sports. >> first, protests taking place in cities across egypt in friday, demonstrators gathered in several neighborhoods in cairo, further north crowds also
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came out to protest against the military backed government. rallies were held and other areas, as well. >> fighters from the rebel group have withdrawn from parts of northern syria. videos emerged of people celebrating close to the burden with turkey. the pullout comes four days ahead of the deadline set by the rival group. >> french president has arrived in the central african republic. he met french troops and plans to meet with the interim president as well as religious leaders. on tuesday, the french lawmakers approved a measure allowing him to help stabilize the country by committing another 400 troops. >> france now has 2,000 troops in central african republic, the european union promised up to 1,000 soldiers on the ground.
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african union led forces have 6,000 troops there. that makes 9,000 soldiers, but u.n. secretary general said at least 12,000 are needed to secure the country. tanya page i sends this report. >> he hold praise on his troops, saying they had done a great job bringing security to some parts of the city but acknowledged over the rest of the country there was still chaos and a space of lawlessness. he's here to talk to the interim president. he wants to deliver a message to her that she needs to keep the doors, the lines of communication open and to be in cluesive in a dialogue that she's conducting. he also wants to see an end to impunity and no temptation to split the country. the question is how she is supposed to bring about law and order when she doesn't have all
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the tools necessary and at her disposal. she doesn't have a functioning army, police force or judicial system. many people employed in those sectors haven't been paid for months. the french president also here to talk to religious leaders who are trying to bring about an end to the cycle of revenge, killings and attacks. amid all these talks, tens of thousands of muslims and christians are still living in fear. >> the world bank and a number of european countries have suspended aid and loans to uganda. that's in response to a controversial anti gay law. the legislations were signed by the ugandan president monday. caroline malone reports. >> it's been called one of the toughest anti gay laws in the world. earlier this week, ugandan president signed new legislation criminalizing homosexuality. international donors have made it clear they're not happy.
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this is a very big move to say this is not a social norm, it's discrimination. i think it's a courageous decision by the bank and shows a shift in the bank. they're learning a built about mistakes made in the past by having too extreme a view of ma the economy should be and this is more saying they have to look at the social impact of our policies. >> the loan is for $19 million, only a small proportion of the large portfolio of projects the world bank has in uganda. uganda does rely on foreign aid for up to 20% of its annual budget. a number of other international donors say the law goes against their fundamental believes in human rights. sweden is reconsidering its aid package. the netherlands and norway have each frozen $9 million of aid and denmark is moving aid from uganda to n.g.o.'s.
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the new law says so-called repeat homosexuals should be jailed for life. one politician involved in writing the law said it's not discriminating against people, but protecting them. >> uganda is an independent country, a sovereign country. we are in the interest of our children, a behavior that is dangerous to them. >> whether you believe that or not, it is clear that uganda's new laws enough to summon international donors to withdraw their support. aljazeera. >> hundreds of pakistani activists have finished a 2000-kilometer protest marge ever march and blaming intelligence agencies for abducting men. the protestors arrived in the capitol islamabad. >> protestors here say they've
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traveled more than 2,000 control terse from the capitol, saying they do not believe in the pakistani state and system anymore and will not be going to pakistan's politicians or the parliament to register their protests. instead, they say they will go to the united nations and ask u.n. and foreign officials to stop these so-called forced disappearances. thousands of youth and activists have been captured by pakistan said intelligence agency, which has been denied by pakistan's forces. they say only international organizations can give some sort of reprieve from these disappearances. >> a look at some other world headlines now. doctors without borders is deeply concerned for patients in myanmar after ordered to stop work in the country. the aid agency hasn't revealed the reason behind the order. a spokesman for the president accused the group of falsely claiming that a massacre had
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taken place. >> china has arrested more than a thousand people and rescued hundred was children in a crackdown on baby trading, part of a six month operation to close four rings, the babies were bought and sold for around $3,000 each. >> in northern yemen, the army and it's allies are engaged in fighting with thea rebels. 43 people have been killed. >> thailand's embattled prime minister has said she has no intention of resigning. she continues to pour her political strong hold in the north, refusing to answer to accusations of corruption. we went to meet her. >> a lot of people want thailand's prime minister out of office, but here in northern thailand, her rule is not contested. this is her hometown, also her political base.
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many people here believe the opposition's demand for her resignation is unconstitutional. she said she won't be pushed out of power. she told me the way out of the political crisis is to hold elections in line with the constitution. >> a lot of people try to, it doesn't mean i withhold my power. >> these people back in the capitol don't want to compromise. protestors disrupted elections earlier this month and said they want a counsel to reform the political system. she is being investigated, which could lead to her removal from office. >> the prime minister's opponents say she is no longer able to governor the country. she denies this and says the only reason she came to the
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north is to inspect government-run projects, but there is no doubt the caretaker prime minister is facing pressure. when in bangkok, she was forced to work from the defense ministry's compound ever since protestors laid siege to her offerses in early january. >> she said she is avoiding a chronfronteddation, but there is already a confrontation. some call it a low intensely civil war. >> some of your supporters are talking about taking to the streets. would you encourage this? >> the protests are illegal and as long as we will be under the democracy ways. >> she can still rely on the support of the people in the rural north. they brought her to office in 2011 and kept her brother, the
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former prime minister in office for many years before military coup deposed him in 2006. the opposition says it wants to get rid of what it calls the taxing regime. her supporters have promised not to allow that to happen. the problem now is that there is a potential for a violent showdown. >> aljazeera continues to demand the release of its staff held in egypt. they have enough spent 62 days in prison, accused of having links with a terrorist organization and spreading false news. aljazeera rejects the charges. another aljazeera journalist has been held since august. still to come, cuba's new billion dollar port, but could it take business away from its
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caribbean neighbors. >> behind lego's success. >> the man in the mask turns the heat on the new york knicks. joe will be here with a sports update. ♪
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what is this place? where are we? this is where we bring together the fastest internet and the best in entertainment. we call it the x1 entertainment operating system. it looks like the future! we must have encountered a temporal vortex. further analytics are necessary. beam us up. ♪ that's my phone. hey. [ female announcer ] the x1 entertainment operating system, only from xfinity. tv and internet together like never before.
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>> hello again, the top stories on the aljazeera news hour, the ousted president of ukraine says he is still the country's leader, that power was seized by pro fascist forces and he was forced to leave because of threats. >> armed men ever taken control of the airport in crimea. in the capitol kiev, ukraine's parliament asked the u.n. security council to call a session. the acting president is summons ukraine's security chiefs over the situation in crimea. >> viktor yanukovych says he will fight for his countries future, but the question is how. julie mcdonald has more from
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london. julie. >> thank you. well, ukraine's ousted president insists he was forced to leave because of threats on his life. he says he'll return when he feels safe. where does that leave the new government, struggling to keep things under control as it is? let's get more from the former british ambassador to ukraine. yanukovych has shown clearly a man in denial at that press conference this morning. >> yes. he was in denial, claiming that he's still the president of ukraine, but he left last friday night. he's now taken himself off to russia and he has lost the support of the people who were supporting him before, politicians and government operators. by the time he left, the guards had already disappeared from around the presidential administration. the day after he left, the man who had been leading his party
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in parliament came on television and denounced him. >> do you think that's why this situation differs quite so much from egypt where we talk about morsi being deposed. >> yanukovych did flee, that's right. >> what about the work that the new government now has to do? you were in the country last week. how behind them are the general population at the moment, what was your thoughts on the mood? >> the mood was very somber. people were mourning the 100 or so and 600 wounded and still a great deal of sorrow. i was at a funeral for one of the people killed. also, there is a great sense of determination. i walked around the independence square on monday, which was only three days after that dreadful attack and all the burning of the barricades, and already the protestors had cleaned everything up. they had rebuilt the barricades.
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there were self defense forces there in helmets and flak jackets determined to guard the square, but a lot of ordinary people laying flowers in mourning, but quite clear that they're there for the long term, they are not about to go away, because they want to keep some control over all the politicians. >> what about the new government. >> what kind of work does it have to do to establish legitimacy and move forward? >> i think that the new government already has legitimacy, because the first thing that was done was that parliament convened, and with more than two thirds majority, which is a constitutional majority. they appointed the speaker of parliament as the acting president, and they said that yanukovych was no longer president. they have now approved the appointment of the new ministers. that was done yesterday, so that has the legitimacy of the parliament, of the elected
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parliament in ukraine. that new government of course has an enormous amount to do, start, stabilization of the country, with attempts at separatism in crimea, which seems to be backed by russia. >> on that note, what part does russia now have to play, do you think? >> throughout this crisis, and even before it, they've been playing a very unhelpful role. there's been a campaign, frankly of lies of what the situation is. you wouldn't recognize from being on the ground in ukraine what is being shown on russian television in the russian immediately i can't, but in the run up to yanukovych's you-turn, his decision to walk from from association with the european union, the russians have heavy pressure on ukraine, cut off key
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imports. i think there were probably two aspects, one is yanukovych in his own mind may not yet have accepted that he's no longer the president, but also what he was doing fits in with the russian game plan of presenting this as a coup by fascists and terrorists instead of what it really was, which was a massive peaceful protest against a hugely corrupt and finally a very ruthless and bloody president. >> we'll have to leave it there. thank you very much for urinalysis. i appreciate it. >> now, ukraine's newly installed cabinet has been trying to work out how to solve its economic crisis. the i.m.f. is visiting next week and there's another huge issue, claims of course of widespread corruption. the prime minister said loans worth $37 billion went missing from state coffers during
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yanukovych's rule, that's $2 billion more than the country said it now needs to avoid to default. austria will freeze bank accounts of ukraineens following the request of authorities. the swiss have launched an investigation against yanukovych and his son, and brought potential asset that is immediate be hidden in switzerland itself. >> i spoke to the joint managing director of the byrne declaration, a swiss organization that investigates and campaigns on international trade issues. i asked about what money laundering actually means in this instance. >> what it actually mean, a person has typically called ruler of a country and he is entourage that has misappropriated assets of his country and brought by possible ways out of the country and then
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in a foreign bank. >> switzerland has made the decision to freeze the assets that are in anyway associated with yanukovych. how are they then going to investigate these? >> the list that is published which means the banks have to check if they have accounts of peppers on that list. the list has a problem, it came too late, at the end of the week, should have come at the beginning of the week. there also are well known businesses close to the family that are not on the list and also there are no companies on the list, although we know even the son of yanukovych has a coal trading company in geneva. >> the next step is what in following this kind of paper trail? >> actually, the banks now have to check their accounts. if they found something, they have to report to the federal office on money laundering that they have found something, and then comes a very complicated
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process where actually a future legitimate government of ukraine has to ask for assistance and prove that this money in fact has been stolen or misappropriated or corruption has been involved, a crime has been involved and only then it can be seized and ultimately return to ukraine. >> how long do you think there's probably been suspicions and i call spent suspicions, because at this point, nothing is proven, but obviously yanukovych is no longer in power. do you think there were inklings before now? >> yes, the dentist which has increased his foreign in three years to half a billion dollars and he had this coal trading company in geneva and obviously he's doing business and other figures are close to the ruling,
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former ruling elite also doing business in geneva, mostly in commodity training. there is a very high suspicion that there is something around here. >> a huge part of ukraine's identity is its language, but there's anger in some areas over a recent decision to cancel a law protecting russian as an official second language. we report from ukraine's second city, which was a former capitol under the soviet union. >> a performance of mid summer night's dream in the middle of the mainly russian-speaking city city, this city also uses the ukrainian language. the poet's most famous works speaks to rebelian against the czarist powers of russia.
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the city was once the capitol of satisfactory jet ukraine. a professor was photographing the exhibits in the museum. these novelists were at the front front of a renaissance here in their mother tongue, all living and working in the same building, nearly all of them shot on the orders of stalin. >> if you take the statistics about the maldecency, newspapers, and the percentage of ukrainian language in t.v. and the radio, you'll see like two thirds of russian language and one third of ukrainian language. >> you don't hear a word of ukrainian spoken around the giant statue of len anyone in the city's freedom square. they're fight to go keep it standing and all that it represents. >> the new parliament's decision to repeal the laws given special protection to the russian language are only likely to exacerbate the east and west of
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the country where the russian language has taken its deepest root. >> school number 62, teenage students learning to speak french. any problems with the grammar and the teacher uses only ukrainian to answer them. there are nearly 1,000 pupils at this school when the country gained independence in all but one of the classrooms, the lessons were taught in russian. that has changed radically. >> the russians are taught in ukrainian and classes are taught in russian and everything done according to the wishes of parents. >> the school's rue craneian flag is flown at half mast in memory of those who died in kiev. with the classrooms empty, sasha and anya began lessons in ballroom dancing, such charm translates into any language and crosses all borders.
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aljazeera. >> that is it from london for the moment, back ho doha. >> anti-government protestors in venezuela are calling for more demonstrations, at least 14 people killed in unrest since the student led protest began. police have issued an arrest warrant for another opposition figure, part of a crackdown on dissent. from caracas, we report. >> residents are preparing for further confrontation with security forces. thursday kicked off a week long carnival but there was no signs of tension easing. >> i want to make an appeal to the president who calls himself a president, this is much too much for him, because the country is enduring hunger, there is no security, no health care. there isn't anything. as an administrator, i get nothing. we should not be in this position any longer. >> there were also protests in
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the capital, caracas, tense standoffs between protestors and security forces. the protests come a day after the president hosted a peace conference, but it was a meeting that the main opposition leaders decided to skip. >> i feel that with the way this government is behaving, it is extinguishing itself. it is consuming itself. this government in the last few days for example, from the international viewpoint has generated more questions. there are more unanswered questions rewarding the dead, the injured, the tortured victims and those deprived of their liberty. >> venezuelas foreign minister suggested that he chose not to attended out of fear. >> they were not there not because they didn't want to go, but because they were subjected to the blackmail of the neofascists that control meetings and dictate policy to any politician who sits down to talk with the legitimate
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government of venezuela. >> protestors plan to block street friday to black traffic heading to the sun-soaked beaches. thursday's protests show the president a harsh reality, despite calling a national holiday, thousands of protestors across the country want to keep up the pressure, a pressure many in the movement hope lead to a change in government policy or him stepping down, both unlikely in this divided country. caracas. >> we've got an update for you on our top story, that's the crisis in ukraine. the new interim government has asked the united nations to intervene. james bays joins us live from the united nations with more on that, james and what you're hearing. >> doreen, yes, the ukrainian parliament asked the u.n. to intervene. a letter has been written to the
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security council asking for a meeting about the situation in ukraine and crimea. a meeting is being hastily convened. it's not on the agenda formally, but you the meeting could take place in 1:15 from now. we understand it will be a closed meeting. we won't hear what they're going to say, but that meeting taking place in just over an hour's time. obviously all of those around the security council table will be aware of the sensitivity of this issue, the security council already divided on many issues, particularly syria, between the western nations and china and russia on the other side. we're talking about a country here, which is one of russia's neighbors, so everyone knows that this is a sensitive issue. >> all right, james. we'll speak to you a little later on. for the time being, thank you very much, james bays, diplomatic editor from the united nations.
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>> still to come on the program, we'll tell you more coming up in a moment.
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>> at a cost of almost a billion dollars, cuba's newest port is being held as a sign of economic strength. the facility built with brazil's help is set to provide a much needed commercial link to the rest of the world. with so much investment going to cuba, other nations are worried about the potential impact on their economies.
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aljazeera reports from free port in the bahamas. >> grand bahama doesn't feel like the kind of place where people have to worry about anything. its economy is driven by tourism and the residents do everything they can to keep visitors entertained. >> come on over, baby. come on, come see big mama. >> she's worked at this market for the past 15 years says it's a matter of survival. >> we need our tourists, we really need them. we have to treat them the best of our ability. we have to treat them good so they return. we need our return guests backed up. >> tourism here looks for now safe, but it's the bahamas shipping industry that could be under threat with cuba's new facility that could see foreign
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investment going there rather than here. >> the state of art port was built, but the european union is looking to strengthen relations with cuba, threatening the monopoly on shipping oaters have enjoyed. it is capable of handling the biggest ships. local business leaders are keeping an eye on developments in cuba. >> i think we have to pay attention. we're also working well with panama, with all the larger ships that they're preparing for. we're already at the party, and those guys are just getting in. >> with tourism on the rise in cuba, some are also concerned that too could steal business from the bahamas. officials see only good things ahead. >> i see the day that you will see the reconnection of a relationship with our close evident neighbor cuba and the bahamas creating to the northern
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part of the caribbean a force much bigger than we've seen in years. >> it continues to be a major shipping hub and there's little doubt cuba is becoming a fast major player in the region. for many, there's plenty of business to come around. >> this is a bahama mama. ok? >> freeport, grand bahama, aljazeera. >> we have an update on all the sports news. >> english premier league through to the last 16 in thure europa league. leading 1-0, scoring a vital goal two minutes into the second half. pulled a goal back, the match then turned on a moment of
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controversy. they won 3-1 on the night and go 3-2 on aggregate. >> many of you probably thought we were dead and buried when they were 1-0 up. it is about getting back on the straight away and we scored five minutes after and then the belief grew. it was electric out there after, and it was only really keeping score. >> the italians took the lead on 16 minutes. on the half hour mark, the english league scored. going through on away goals, held out until 12 minutes left on the clock when it was 2-1, the italians eventually winning 3-1. >> it was an easy game for us. we're fit and a very quick team.
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as soon as we scored the second goal, we tried to make thattain possession and take the chances when we had them. >> in the other games, there was an incredible match in frankfurt with an away goal after the tie ended 5-5 on aggregate. 6-1 over their two legs. >> djokovic is facing federer in the semifinals at the dubai championships, now ranked eighth in the world and seeded fourth for this tournament. they've played the opening set and djokovic leads 5-3. the winner will play third seed thomas after straight sets in the other semifinal. >> the mexican open fell flat, the three time champion set to
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lob up against anderson in his quarter final. he was forced to retire through an injury. also through second seed andy murray, the scott had to dig deep and got frustrated at times. he came back from the brink of defeat to win, setting up a semifinal. >> the miami heat have made it six from six in the nba, their latest victims are the new york knicks. lebron james is wearing a mask to protect his broken nose. he caught 31 points on the night and wade added 23. the heat won. james plans to play with the mask for the next couple weeks.
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>> on to contradict now, a thrilling finish as india took on srilanka. their former skipper has been the hero. he's just been dismissed for 103. they are currently 259 for eight, need another six runs of just eight balls. >> england back in action following their disastrous campaign. >> the chicago blackhawks have made losing start to their post olympic campaign, losing to the new york range injuries following the sochi winter games break. the rangers have six wins in
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seven games. the penalty shootout with themont canadiens and pittsburgh penguins game. ovechkin seals win for the capitals against the panthers, the capitals ninth win in 10 meetings with the panthers. for more, check out aljazeera.com/sports. >> that's all the sport for now. >> thank you very much. now for a moment, imagine lego on average sells a high amount of legos every day. as we report, profits are up. >> i love this song! >> in it's 82 year history, lego has seen many ups and quite a
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few downs. right now, the toy maker couldn't be riding higher. in less than a month, it's feature film, the lego movie has raked in $300 million at the box office. >> i am so pumped up. >> and so must be the wolves second largest toy manufacturer. it just posted $1.1 billion in profit for 2013, up 9% over the previous year, and it's still growing, although not quite as fast as in previous years. >> the company has quadrupled in size and our strategy is one of purely organic growth. therefore, i think as the company is becoming a very large part of the global toy market, it's natural that the growth rates are coming down to a more sustainable level. >> lego is here. >> from humble beginnings as a family run business, the company has grown into something of a global pop culture phenomenon. over the years, 650 billion lego
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piece he is have been produced, laid end to end would stretch around the world 18 times. >> the success companies built acknowledge piece of plastic, the interlocking brick, take six of them and the creative possibilities are limitless. the actual number is 915 million. you heard right, the company says there are 950 mommy ways to combine just six lego bricks. >> and then countless more to cash in on that. these days, everything from harry potter to star wars eventually finds a place in the land of lego, a global toy empire built win plastic brick at a time. aljazeera. >> we're back in just a moment right here on aljazeera with all the day's stop stories and a
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full bulletin of news. stay with us.
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welcome back to aljazeera america. these are the stories we're following for you. >> i intend to continue fighting for the future of ukraine. >> ousted ukrainian president viktor yanukovych speaking out for the first time since he fled ukraine. a defiant heard saying he will return. what really happened in crimea, as armed forces set up shop around airports there. and some californians preparing for the worst, a new threat of flooding because of past

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